Learn English with Hotel Transylvania

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Hibiscus Teach · Cartoons

Hotel Transylvania

A Warm Welcome, a Small Adventure

Welcome a visitor and agree where to go and when to return.

A2 English target60-minute lesson target

13+ target; monster comedy and later menace must be screened. A2 requires a manageable exact cut and simple listening demands.

Created by , British English teacher.

Welcome to Hotel Transylvania!

Dracula is welcoming guests to his unusual hotel.

Watch for: What makes this hotel different from an ordinary hotel?

Original source

Clip A quiz: 6 questions

Answer about this clip. Replay when you need to. Choose one answer for each question.

1. What kind of place is Dracula welcoming people to?
2. Who is the main host?
3. What is unusual about the guests?
4. Why is the hotel meant to feel safe?
5. What event brings the friends together?
6. How does Dracula treat the arriving monsters?

Useful English

Welcome! Come in.

You say: Welcome two visitors into your home.

One possible response

Welcome! Please come in.

Your room is over here.

You say: Show a visitor the kitchen.

One possible response

The kitchen is over here.

Keep talking: 3 questions

Speak before opening the help or example. With a partner, ask a follow-up. On your own, say your answer aloud.

  1. Which guest would you like to meet?

    Help me start

    I would like to meet…

    Show an example

    I would like to meet the mummy.

  2. What makes a guest feel welcome?

    Help me start

    A guest needs…

    Show an example

    A guest needs a friendly hello and clear directions.

  3. Welcome a visitor and show them one room.

    Help me start

    Come in. The…

    Show an example

    Come in. The kitchen is over here.

Pouty Bat Face

Mavis wants to go outside the hotel, and her father discusses the trip with her.

Watch for: Where can Mavis go, and for how long?

Original source

Clip B quiz: 6 questions

Answer about this clip. Replay when you need to. Choose one answer for each question.

1. What does Mavis want to do?
2. What place does she first talk about visiting?
3. What real place does Dracula name?
4. What closer place does he suggest?
5. How long does he suggest for the first outing?
6. How does Mavis respond to his permission?

Useful English

Can I go out for a while?

You say: Ask to go to the park.

One possible response

Can I go to the park for a while?

Please come back in thirty minutes.

You say: Ask someone to return in twenty minutes.

One possible response

Please come back in twenty minutes.

Keep talking: 3 questions

Speak before opening the help or example. With a partner, ask a follow-up. On your own, say your answer aloud.

  1. Would you choose a nearby visit or a long trip?

    Help me start

    I would choose…

    Show an example

    I would choose a nearby visit first.

  2. Where can you go for half an hour near home?

    Help me start

    I can go to…

    Show an example

    I can go to the park near my house.

  3. Ask to go somewhere and agree a return time.

    Help me start

    Can I…? / Please…

    Show an example

    Can I go to the park? Please come back in thirty minutes.

Mastery: use your English

Apply language and ideas from both clips in new situations.

Mastery: 6 questions

Use the English in a new situation. Choose one answer for each question.

1. A visitor arrives. Choose a welcome, not an instruction to leave.
2. A guest asks where to sleep. What is useful?
3. Ask permission to visit a nearby park.
4. It is two o’clock. Ask your guest to return at half past two.
5. A shop is two minutes away on foot. It is ___.
6. A parent lets you make the plan. Thank them for this.

Put it all together: speaking

Use English from both clips. Start with the two short questions, then take a private role each. On your own, practise both roles.

  1. What does Dracula want in both clips?

    Help me start

    He wants…

    Show an example

    He wants people to be safe.

  2. What does a visitor need to know before going out?

    Help me start

    They need…

    Show an example

    They need the place and the time to come back.

  3. Can you reach a workable outcome together using the two private role cards?

    Private Role A

    You are hosting a visitor. Lunch is at one and you need everyone back by then. Ask what your visitor wants to see.

    Private Role B

    You want to see the river. It is ten minutes away. You want twenty minutes there. It is twelve o’clock now. Do not reveal all the times until asked.

    Open only your own role card. Share its information by speaking, without showing the card.

    Help me start

    Ask a useful question, share the missing information and agree on the next step. Use a word or phrase from each clip.

    Check your conversation

    • Complete the practical goal on both role cards.
    • Use at least one target item from each clip.
    • Ask a relevant follow-up and respond to information you did not know.
    • End with a clear agreement, next step or summary.
    Show an example

    A: Welcome! Would you like to go out before lunch? B: Can I visit the river? A: How far is it? B: Ten minutes. I want twenty minutes there. A: All right. Please come back by one. B: Thank you.

    Try again: The river path is closed. Suggest the nearby park and agree the new return time.

Original teaching activities: Hibiscus Teach. Film and television clips belong to their respective owners.